Happy late Sunday/early Monday! How are you doing? I spent the weekend about two hours north of Nagoya in a little town in Komagane, Nagano. It was really beautiful! It snowed early this morning, which made me excited as Nagoya barely got any snow in the winter.
Anyways, today is #SongLyricsSunday! This week’s prompt is “North/South/East/West”. While I was searching for songs that could fit the prompt, I suddenly remembered the late 80s/early 90s English pop band Go West. Then, I remembered that they wrote a song that was included in soundtrack for the 90s romantic comedy movie Pretty Woman. This isn’t the first post where I wrote about the soundtrack as I wrote about “Wild Women Do” when Natalie Cole passed away a few years ago. But, this month marks a special anniversary for the beloved movie, so I decided to write about “The King of Wishful Thinking” by Go West.
30 Years Since the Release of Pretty Woman
The romantic comedy Pretty Woman was released in the United States on March 23, 1990. Inspired from such 80s films like Wall Street and The last Details, the plot Pretty Woman bears some resemblance to the Pygmalion myth (which My Fair Lady is based on). The movie was super popular worldwide as it grossed $463,406,268, the fourth highest grossed movie of 1990. It is currently Disney’s highest-grossing R-rated movie.
“The King of Wishful Thinking” wasn’t supposed to be included in the movie’s soundtrack. A user on the site Songfacts had this to say about the background of the song: “Go West’s record label EMI was associated with the soundtrack. When executives heard the demo, they asked to use it. The song doesn’t make much sense in the context of the film, but it had a fresh sound that helped carry its scene and boost sales of the soundtrack.”[1]
I love Pretty Woman! I love the chemistry Edward and Vivian and their romantic adventure. I also the lightheartedness of the film, even though there are so dark elements presented. Vivan is such a fun-loving, determined, and quirky woman! My favorite scene is when she is shopping in Rodeo Drive.
🎵 I’ll Get Over You I know I Will 🎵
“The King of Wishful Thinking” was written by vocalist Peter Cox, guitarist Richard Drummie, and Martin Page. Cox and Drummie are members of the band Go West. Martin Page, on the other hand, is primarily a bass player but has been known to play other instruments as well. The English singer-songwriter played the keyboards for Ray Parker Jr.’s “Ghostbuster”. He also co-wrote songs like Starship’s “We Built This City” and Heart’s “These Dreams”. Martin also worked with such artists like Earth, Wind & Fire, Robbie Williams, Josh Groban, and Barbra Streisand.
Page wrote the song with a blend of a Motown sound with Minnesota Prince sound. “There was a song by the Fine Young Cannibals at that time called “She Drives Me Crazy”,” Martin said in an interview, “It had a really attractive tempo and feel to it, so I used that a little bit as a template for building a song for them.”[1]
Cox and Drummie wrote the song’s lyrics which details positive thinking after a breakup. The lyrics details about one’s thoughts and feelings from a breakup. Even though the character is in denial and has been down and out, it knows that it can be happy once more. Everything is going to be alright, the character hopes; it is the “King of Wishful Thinking”.
What do you think of Go West’s “King of Wishful Thinking”? Does the song’s lyrics remind you of past relationships: either romantic, family, or friendship? Let me know in the comments below!
Here is American late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel and American actor Paul Rudd recreating the music video on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon:
Lyrics to “King of Wishful Thinking” by Go West
I don’t need to fall at your feet
Just ’cause you cut me to the bone
And I won’t miss the way that you kiss me
We were never carved in stone
If I don’t listen to the talk of the town
Then maybe I can fool myself
I’ll get over you I know I will
I’ll pretend my ship’s not sinking
And I’ll tell myself I’m over you
‘Cause I’m the king of wishful thinking
I am the king of wishful thinking
I refuse to give in to my blues
That’s not how it’s going to be
And I deny the tears in my eyes
‘Cause I don’t want to let you see no
That you have made a hole in my heart
And now I’ve got to fool myself
I’ll get over you I know I will
I’ll pretend my ship’s not sinking
And I’ll tell myself I’m over you
‘Cause I’m the king of wishful thinking (I’ll get over you I know I will)
I’ll pretend my ship’s not sinking
And I’ll tell myself I’m over you
‘Cause I’m the king of wishful thinking (king of wishful thinking)
I will never, never shed a tear for you
I’ll get over you (I know I will)
If I don’t listen to the talk of the town
Then maybe I can fool myself
I’ll get over you I know I will
I’ll pretend my ship’s not sinking
And I’ll tell myself I’m over you
‘Cause I’m the king of wishful thinking
I’m the king of wishful thinking
I’ll get over you I know I will
You made a hole in my heart
But I won’t shed a tear for you
I’ll be the king of wishful thinking
I’ll get over you (I know I will)
I’ll pretend my heart’s still beating
‘Cause I’ve got no more tears for you
I’m the king of wishful thinking
I’ll get over you (I know I will)
You made a hole in my heart
And I’ll tell myself I’m over you
‘Cause I’m the king of wishful thinking
If you want to participate, here are the rules:
- Post the lyrics to the song of your choice, whether it fits the theme or not.
- Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due.
- Make sure you also credit the singer/band and if you desire you can provide a link to where you found the lyrics.
- Link to the YouTube video, or pull it into your post so others can listen to the song.
- Ping back to this post will eventually work, as long as you are being patient, but you can also place your link in the comments if you don’t like to wait.
- Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
- Feel free to suggest future prompts.
- Have fun and enjoy the music.
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References
[1] Songfacts. “King Of Wishful Thinking by Go West – Songfacts.” Song Meanings at Songfacts, www.songfacts.com/facts/go-west/king-of-wishful-thinking.
Wow, this is a classic movie and a classic song. I still remember watching this with my girl friends and we were in tears… The song was perfect for the movie and Go West was the top dog back then.
It is such a great movie! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I had completely forgotten about this song. Such a great movie and great song.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Love this film! DIdn’t know Disney had anything to do with it. Well you learn something new every day!
Yes, I didn’t know that Disney had a hand in this movie but they did! Disney owns a couple of studios like Miramax and Touchstone Pictures that were geared more towards adults. The director, Gerry Marshall, went to direct The Princess Diaries for Disney.
I absolutely love the Tonight Show remakes of some of these classic 80s/90s songs. That is great!
They are super great. Jimmy Fallon is super talented. I love his take on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song. What is your favorite remake?
Yes. I absolutely love the Tonight Show remakes of some of these classic 80s/90s songs. That is great!
Oh my God,didn’t know Disney has to do with that movie. You lern a thing or two every day. I love that movie is a cult classic
Yes, I didn’t know that Disney had a hand in this movie but they did! Disney owns a couple of studios like Miramax and Touchstone Pictures that were geared more towards adults. The director, Gerry Marshall, went to direct The Princess Diaries for Disney.
I love this movie is a cult classic didn’t know it was 30 years 30 years old
It is such a great movie! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Wow, I didn’t realize it’s been 30 years since Pretty Woman was released! I’ve only seen it a few times and don’t particularly remember the song from the movie. But listening to it and reading the lyrics, I can say I think anyone who has been in any kind of relationship and has had their heart broken can relate in some way.
This song was played when he driving the Lotus Esprit through L.A. during the opening credits.
My favorite song in the entire movie! I love love love the soundtrack!
It is a great soundtrack! I would put it as a staple of 90s rom com soundtracks!
Such an awesome ode to Pretty Woman! Love it. And Jimmy Fallon – what a man 🙂
Jimmy Fallon is super talented. What is your favorite remake from him? Mine is his version of the theme song to Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Absolutely loved the movie. Can’t believe its 30 years now.
Me too! Time flies but this movie will be eternal.
Pretty Woman will remain one of my favorite movies. I did not even know it’s been 30 years.
Nice. I learned something new from your blog article. Thanks for sharing.
Time flies but this movie will always be eternal. It feels like yesterday that it was released!
This is a cool kind of music for one great movie. I love it!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I love how feel good the songs are. It’s really giving offgood vibes.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I am hearing this song for first time. Nice and feel good song. Loved it
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I feel like Pretty Woman had one of the best soundtracks for an old-school movie. It was one of my favorites growing up.
It is a great soundtrack! I feel like it is a staple soundtrack for 90s rom coms!
Fantastic post, this makes me want to go watch pretty woman now!
Let me know what you think about the movie!
Pretty Woman is a good movie. We enjoy watching it everytime we do. I also love the soundtrack.
It is a timeless classic! What is your favorite scene from the movie or favorite song?
I haven’t watch the pretty woman but it seems interesting movie to watch. I’m glad you got to enjoy the snow there. Here it snows a lot.
The snow was lovely! I recommend watching Pretty Woman, it is a great movie!
I loved this movie, thank you for a fun trip down memory lane.
It is such a great movie! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
you reminded me of this cult movie. I am going to watch this tonight. Thanks for this lovely post!!
Let me know what you think about the movie!
Oh I will forever love this movie. Such a classic!
It is! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I haven’t seen Pretty Woman in years. I am definitely going to have to watch it soon. I love this song!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I first saw this movie when I was 9 at my great grandmothers house recorded on VHS. THe edited version of course. It somehow at that age became my favorite movie and years later had a daughter and named her Vivienne.
That is pretty cool that your daughter is named after the main character!
Love the film… Been ages since I have seen it! might try and dig it out and watch it again.
It is such a great movie! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Pretty woman is a movie that I could watch over and over. I did not even realize it’s been 30 years, The music is phenomenal.
It’s my first time to learn about this movie and it looks interesting! I can’t wait to watch it!
Let me know what you think about the movie when you do!
Coming back to your post makes me listen to music again.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I love this song. It is so catchy and perfect for road trips.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Gosh this brings back such good memories!
It is such a great movie, right? Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I still remember the first time I watched pretty woman. I loved that movie, can’t believe it is 30 years old now.
It is such a great movie. It is a timeless movie!
I love the movie Pretty Woman! I watched it (again!) just a few weeks ago. It has a great soundtrack
It does! What is your favorite scene of the movie?
This song was the song of parties, trips etc back in those days.
Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Oh my! Of course “Go West” had a ton of great songs! I remember Pretty Woman movie it was one of my favourite, I can’t believe 30 years have passed already. Thank you for selecting this song, it brought back many memories.
Go West has amazing music and it was great to feature their song in Pretty Woman, which is such a timeless classic!
Great content! Super high-quality! Keep it up! 🙂
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
THIRTY YEARS?! OMFG! I feel so dang old right now!
Shhhh, you are forever 21! ;P
This brings so many amazing memories, I love it…Great song, thank you so much for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I love love love pretty woman! I’ve been dying to watch it on Broadway to see if they’ve done justice to the film 😉
Me too! I want to see the Broadway version to see if it as good as the movie!
I love this movie and I’ve always liked the song. It’s so catchy!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I still enjoy watching this movie. It is one of my favorite movies
It is such a timeless classic! I love Julia Roberts!
As always, your knowledge of music is awesome. And I loved the songs in this post. They remind me of younger easier days. I think I will watch Pretty Woman once the kids go to bed tonight!
Let me know what you think of the movie when you do watch it!
this song keeps ringing in my head almost all the time. Such an amazing classic
It is a good song! Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
This film is my age and I am baffled I have seen it many times and its sountrack is legendary!
It is such a great movie! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I just love that movie Pretty Woman! I have watched it so many times now, love the soundtrack and the music in it too
It is such a timeless classic. I can watch it over and over and never get bored with it!
Loved the movie…a classic and great song!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Oh I love this movie but it’s been a really long time since I’ve watched it. Thanks so much for sharing this with us!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
30 years, wow! I loved Pretty Woman. The song is cute.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I actually have never watched Pretty Woman! I know I must because I know how iconic it is! What a cute song!
You should watch it, it is such a great movie!
This was an interesting read because even though I loved the movie, I didn’t pay attention to the music. Very nice to know.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
Pretty woman was one of its kind, kind of classic! Absolutely loved watching the movie and its music! Thanks for the throwback to simpler, sweeter times 🙂
It is such a timeless classic! I love rewatching it because it never gets old!
being brutally honest, this post just made me feel old! good post but its crazy to think 1990 was 30 years ago. this is a good song though!
Ahaha! Don’t feel like that! Glad you enjoyed the song though! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
What a beautiful photo you posted. So picturesque. I love when you post all these interesting and unique groups that I would never have known about. It’s awesome!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I’m probably the only person who didn’t like the movie. I don’t remember the song but I like the lyrics.
It’s ok. Glad you like the lyrics though! ❤️
I love Pretty Woman, and I’ve seen it a hundred times, and will be seeing it maybe a thousand more. It’s such a Cinderella kind of movie.
It is such a timeless classic! Love Julia Roberts!
I can’t believe it’s been that long since Pretty Woman. It seems wild but I know it to be true. It is a great song to remind me.
It is such a timeless classic! Glad you enjoyed the song! Thanks for stopping by! ❤️
I saw pretty woman when I was 4 years old. I cant believe this movie is 30 years old I am going to watch it what a classic!
it’s awesome, I didn’t get to watch it but Now I have too, great post !
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